18th Oct 2006, 23:50

I live in Iran and I have one. I have driven it for more than 16000 Km. It's a nice car with a 1.8 Litre engine from the Peugeot 405. It has enough room for 5 guys and a very big trunk. The interior design is also good.

The only defect I see in it after 9 months, is that the dynamo ball bearing began to whistle a little, and front windows and rear seat belt locks have started to make a jerking noise.

30th Jun 2007, 16:27

3rd Jul 2007, 00:14

It's very interesting to hear about cars I will probably never have a chance to see. I am impressed to learn about Iran's car manufacturing business and think it says something about the people. I recently posted a message on a large auto forum to show members Iran Khodro, and they were impressed as well. As an Israeli, I wish there was a car industry here, a country where a new Punto costs over $20,000 and a BMW 330 can reach nearly $100,000. Unfortunately, it seems we are too late. Many cars here are made in Turkey for example and it seems there is no room for another manufacturer. I hope my children have a chance to drive a Samand one day.

3rd Aug 2007, 02:12

6th Dec 2007, 00:03

There is a long Distance between my house and work place and I have to drive every day about 200 Km. for this purpose in the past years I had WV Passat (not new model) and Peugeot 206. but now I have a Samand and I really feel better on it. it runs as a horse and I drive normally on 140 km speed bcuz this speed is really reliale for this car (sometimes up to 180 and sometimes lower). up to now I have driven about 100,000 Km and except normal maintenance I have not any problem with it.

After all I have to say its the best choice on the road driving for the money paid.

The bad point is somewhere of cabin making noise in the old version after driving 80000 Km (they say solve this prob. for new models) and the engine needs more power for this size of car in the first and 2nd gear and finally I like the horn on the steering wheel, but it is not there.

The good points: it has good handling, big space, nice ridding, intense heater and cooler, almost complete facilities. the current 1.8 engine is nice in the road, but if it was 16 valve (i mean the Xu7Jp/L3) I think nothing more was needed.

7th Dec 2007, 07:11

I don't drive a Samand, but I've experience of this car since many friends have it here. Also, many taxis are Samand in Iran. Regarding interior design, I see the Samand as a big family car. The body is also strong and safe. The engine is 405 Pugeot engine and has a good performance. Weight is almost 1800 kg or more; it's among the heavy weight class. The brake system is not that good for a car like this so you can feel immediately that the car doesn't stop smoothly. The major drawback of this car is that you cannot see behind you easily, because the back trunk is placed higher than driver seat. Therefore, you've got to take care to look for children or obstacles when you're driving backward.

Fuel consumption is quite high (1.8 engine). The cooling system is not that good compared with 206 Pugeot.

If you want a family car and you're not a teenager, you can try this car. Older drivers will be comfortable with this car; they can drive over bad, stony roads or rivers easily. The price is also good. It should be close to 9000 Euro...

6th Jul 2008, 04:21

I have the SOuREN the newest model. It's very nice looking and much reliable car than the old model (no cabin noises after 80000KM) and it's equiped with a better brakes and clutch. I love the handling. I can make a very tight cornering maneuvers with it (better than Peugeot 206 or 405).

17th May 2012, 14:07

On 2003 when a friend of mine bought a Samand, I bought a Peugeot 405, since I was believed the 405 is the original, and much better than Samand. But we were using our cars to go around, and sometimes swapping/competing, then I found out that this Samand is in fact a better car than the 405! It has got a smaller wheelbase, more facilities (trip computer, mug holders, access to the trunk from the backseats...) the body is stronger, and with the same engine it is faster!

The only problem was the windshield vision was tighter in Samand than the 405, which I think most of the new more aerodynamic cars have that problem!